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nydus/Short FictionPublic

A collection of all of the short stories and novellas written by Leo Tolstoy.

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Table of Contents

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“ ‘For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved.’

“ ‘He that believeth on Him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.’

“ ‘And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil.’

“ ‘For everyone that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light lest his deeds should be reproved.’

“ ‘But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest that they are wrought in God.’

“Be not unhappy, my son. We are all the children of God and His servants. We all go to make up His one army! Do you think that He has no servants besides you? And that if you, in all your strength, had given yourself to His service, would you have done all that He required all that men ought to do to establish His kingdom? You say you would have done twice, ten times, a hundred times more than you did. But suppose you had done ten thousand times ten thousand more than all men, what would that have been in the work of God? Nothing! To God’s work, as to God Himself, there are no limits and no end. God’s work is in you. Come to Him, and be not a laborer but a son, and you become a copartner with the infinite God and in His work. With God there is neither small nor great, but there is straight and crooked. Enter into the straight path of life and you will be with God, and your work will be neither small nor great, but it will be God’s work. Remember that in heaven there is more joy over one sinner, than over a hundred just men. The world’s work, all that you have neglected to do, has only shown you your sin, and you have repented. And as you have repented, you have found the straight path; go forward in it with God, and think not of the

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